Simple Touch
by Rui
Summary: Set after the Tunnel of Lost Love, a simple lunch is never simple when it comes to Ranma and Akane.


Simple Touch

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DISCLAIMER: Ranma and co. belong to their rightful owner. I own nothing, I only spend money on this not make money from it! I promise! Please don't sue! Author's Note: This is POINTLESS Waff for R/A fans! ^_^ It was a self assignment to see how long it would take to write three pages or more of a story, and it took me about an hour. Yeah!! Anyway, no flames for crying out loud, I warned you! 

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By the time the couple had finally staggered back to the picnic area, Ryouga and Ukyo weren't really all that hungry. They wanted separate beds where the could collapse and sleep for about three years. Shampoo was her ever aggressive self, sticking her nose up in the air as Ukyo dropped down beside her on the bench. 

Their plan failed, and it wasn't the amazon's fault-at least in the amazon's perspective. It was the spatula girl's fault for falling for the pig boy in the first place. But around every cloud is a silver lining, because of the eternal lost boy, there was one less person to compete for her Airen. Although, the purple haired girl laughed to herself, there wasn't any real competition, just annoying girl's hovering around her husband like gnats. 

One of those annoying gnat girl's were by his side, Shampoo glared for a moment, but when Akane noticed and reflected the glare, the girl turned away from everyone and looked out towards the water. 

Akane huffed in annoyance, finished with her food, she put both of her balled fists into her lap and muttered under her breath. What right did that Chinese BIMBO have to glare at her like she was doing something wrong? SO what if she was sitting by Ranma, it was almost second nature to sit beside him at meals. He'd been living at her house long enough, ate enough meals with them to have the other automatically by the other's side. It wasn't that she choose to sit by him, or that she minded it, but it was more of a habit for her now a days. 

"Wasn't that lovely outing?" Kasumi said, breaking the semi-silence of people chewing. Cologne nodded her head in agreement, but remarked that it was another failure. The eldest Tendo female smiled and went into conversation with the three hundred-year-old lady. 

Ranma jerked suddenly by Akane's side, curious, she looked at the boy who was glaring across the table. Glancing over towards the one in front of him, Akane gave another glare to Shampoo. Ranma's grip on his sandwich tightened, making the mustard drip down on the paper plate as he jumped again. 

The nerve of that girl! Right in front of everyone too! Akane wasn't too sure what the girl was doing, but Shampoo was currently giving a very seductive look to ~her~ fiancee. Well, this wasn't going to continue! 

Nearly growling in annoyance, the youngest Tendo got and idea. Whatever it was that was bothering Ranma, it was coming from underneath the table. Akane was dying to see what was going on, although she had a pretty good idea. 

"Has anyone seen P-chan?" She clicked away five seconds in her head, and ducked in beneath the table, in pretense that she was looking for her piglet. Ryouga had gone completely rigid on the far edge of the table, Nabiki had sighed and the still jumping Ranma growled something about bacon. 

When she had gotten a good view of underneath the table at exactly what was going on, the red in her face made her look like a hornless red devil. Th-that GIRL had the NERVE to be rubbing her shoeless foot up and down Ranma's leg, sometimes edging higher than his knee, which is when he jumped in protest. Grinding her teeth together, the Tendo girl was not about to let this happen with her RIGHT there. 

/I don't CARE if Ranma likes it or not!/ Akane seethed within her mind. Quickly, the girl reached out to the naked foot, and pinched the top of it. The other girl yelped. 

"Stupid tomboy! Why violent girl do that?" Shampoo demanded after Akane had made her reappearance on the topside. 

"Do ~what~ Shampoo?" Akane asked, her right eyebrow twitching in barely controlled anger. The purple haired Amazon shot daggers at the blue haired girl, "Keep your FEET to yourself!" 

This got a chuckle out of some, and a grumble out of Shampoo, Ukyo was fit to be tied, and if it hadn't been for Cologne knocking Mouse on the head with her staff, he would have tried to bit Ranma's nose off. 

"Shampoo can do what she want to her husband!" 

"He's ~not~ your husband!" 

"Akane, this has been such a pleasant day, please don't ruin it." Kasumi asked sweetly as their father started to cry about how romantic it was for his little girl to be defending her fiancee. 

The girl agreed to calm down, and looked at the now triumphant looking Shampoo. 

"That goes for you as well great-granddaughter." Cologne warned. 

Akane returned the smug look, both came to a mutual decision to ignore the other. After a few minutes, Ranma began his third helping and unwinded a bit since the assault. 

Ranma looked over at his short-haired fiancé and leaned over to whisper in his ear, "Thanks. That was getting annoying." 

Blushing, she merely nodded. This got her mind to wondering, what if she was on the other side of the table doing that to him? Would Ranma have minded? Would he have jumped? Protested? Lost his lunch and appetite? 

No, Ranma only lost his appetite whenever she cooked. 

But what if she touched him? Would he like that or would it be as presumptuous as Shampoo? There was only one way to find out, but Akane really didn't want to think about the negative consequences, like Ranma glaring at her, or jumping or calling her a pervert. Like it or not, there would be no denying her action. 

And what action should she take? Something that would only pass between them...so the lines of a kiss were defiantly out of the question! The young lady felt her cheeks flare a deep red color at her own mental image of her and Ranma in a passionate kiss. Oh, yeah, they'd be married or dead by the end of the day if anything like that ever got seen! 

Shaking her head as if to clear if from those thoughts, Akane looked down at her own small hands in her lap, and then over to Ranma's. She shifted her eyes to his leg as it did the annoying sewing machine movements. He was fidgety; Ranma always got this way when he was annoyed or thinking. 

Swallowing a large lump of fear in her throat, the short martial artist almost completely talked herself out of it, until those pesky memories came floating back into her brain. How he'd taken her hand in the cave and told her to stay close. Sure, later she was fighting mad thinking that Akane needed his protection was absurd! But for the brief moments before hand, it had been sweet of him to think of her. So her touch, the girl reasoned, did make him sick to his stomach if he was the one to reach for her first. 

Then the Christmas memories took over, the one where they crash landed in the attic and he'd been SO close and smelt so nice. Akane had been thankful that the darkness of the attic hid her blush after Ranma said her name, and right before the crash-landed in the dojo surrounded by all those people! Later that same night, he'd also touched her willingly. Not asking and probably scared out of his wits, Ranma had wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. Akane's cheeks went into a deeper blush as she remembered how she felt the tension ease out of frame when she'd lean her head on his strong chest. 

Okay, so the heck with NOT doing it, the girl glowered at her own foolishness. She wanted to see if he'd jump or not, but there was only way that Akane'd could think of to do it. 

"Ranma, can you stop your leg? I'm getting motion sickness over here." Nabiki voice could have been an angel's at that point and time. Of course! That was it! 

"Can't help it, I have a lot of energy." Ranma replied between chomps. 

"Then run around the tent a few hundred times, that should get rid of any energy." The middle sister taunted coolly. 

"Hmph." Was the only sound he muttered, as the last piece of his sandwich disappeared into the steel trap he called his mouth. But Ranma had tried to stop the action of his leg, but it was less than a minute later he started it up again. Nabiki gave a purely annoyed look and announced she was going for a walk, dragging a Kuno whom she claimed she needed for 'protection.' More like money for the shops that were located along the riverside. 

Slowly, gingerly, Akane unballed her fist, and even with more caution, she reached across the few inches from her lap to Ranma's leg. With her last bit of courage, she gently laid her hand on top of the energetic leg. 

The leg stopped all movement immediately, as did the crunching of Ranma eating the remainder of his chips. The only sound Akane could focus on was the pounding in her ears, it was silly to be nervous of such a little touch. But it was the first time she'd been forward with him, actually having her hand rest upon his thigh, to her was an enormous step. 

The sounds of Ranma swallowing hard, and then the crunching allowed the girl to breathe again. At least Akane hadn't made him lose his appetite! In fact, casting a side-glance at the black haired pigtailed boy, Akane almost fell off the bench to see him blushing and also side glancing at his fiancé. 

Just when the girl was beyond embarrassed that besides his red cheeks and curious eyes, Ranma didn't do anything, she was about to pull her hand away. But as Akane lifted her hand off his stilled leg, something happened that had her shocked. 

Ranma wrapped his callused hand around Akane's own smaller hand. Squeezing it gently, and not letting it go anywhere for the time being. Akane blushed heavily, but smiled only after Ranma whispered, yet again, "Thanks." 

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Yeah, I know, POINTLESS!!! What on earth is THIS? Welllllll I told you it was just WAFF. ^_^ So you should have known! Heheheeh...


End file.
